


Shattered Kings

by DesertLily



Series: Whumptober 2020 [21]
Category: The Magnus Archives (Podcast)
Genre: Elias Bouchard Being a Bastard, Epilepsy, Epileptic Melanie King, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Manipulative Elias Bouchard, Melanie King POV, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Seizure, The Author is epileptic, Whumptober, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-10-21
Packaged: 2021-03-09 06:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27139594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DesertLily/pseuds/DesertLily
Summary: Melanie never thought to mention her epilepsy. It never seemed as if it would be much of an issue. That was of course, until Elias decides to try and mess with her head.
Relationships: Martin Blackwood & Melanie King
Series: Whumptober 2020 [21]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1946296
Comments: 3
Kudos: 35
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Shattered Kings

**Author's Note:**

> Fun fact; When I originally listened to the scene where Elias messes with Melanie's head, it lowkey reminded me of having a seizure at first. I also like to project thus; Epileptic!Melanie. For the 'seizure' prompt for Whumptober

Melanie had always had difficulty in being genuine with her emotions and being open about who she was. She was, however, entirely sincere in saying that she wanted to kill Elias Bouchard. She hated people before - detested them even! - but no one caused her to have such a deep and visceral rage. Besides, who would really miss him? He hardly seemed the type to have friends! So she kept trying and she kept failing. For whatever reason, he always  _ knew _ every time she tried. It was unnerving. It just pissed her off more. 

Anger was something Melanie knew well. After all, she had been angry for most of her life. She had been angry when she first came out. She had been angry when she was diagnosed with epilepsy. She had been angry when her dad died. She had been even angrier since her trip to India; since she had been shot. Melanie couldn’t really explain it - only that her anger finally felt justified. It felt  _ right _ to build up her rage. It felt reassuring - as if she should just give in and let it consume her. She was getting closer with each passing day. It was inevitable that she would be pushed over the edge. That push came when she learnt the truth about the Magnus Institute. At least, the closest thing to the truth that Elias was willing to tell them all. 

It was what led to her many attempts on his life. If he died then maybe she would finally be free from...this. Maybe her anger would finally be gone and for once, she could be in control. Elias initially just seemed...amused by her attempts. But that amusement didn’t last forever. 

It had been a bad week for Melanie. It had begun with a shouting match between her and her consultant over him trying to take her off of her meds. Because  _ apparently _ going eighteen months without a seizure was proof that she would be fine without them - instead of proof that they were  _ actually working _ . After far too much arguing, she was allowed to keep her medication. But it certainly set the tone for the week and by the time she was called into Elias’s office, she was on an extremely short fuse. 

Melanie didn’t remember much of the meeting, in all honesty. She remembered things being tense and Elias furrowing his eyebrows at her. Then she was falling. Then...nothing. Absolute utter nothingness. No thoughts. No sound. No vision. No...anything. 

Melanie didn’t know how long she stayed like that for but eventually her eyes pushed themselves open. It took her a few moments to register where she was on. On the sofa in the archives break room. She wasn’t entirely sure how she got there but she was aware of one thing; her body  _ ached _ . Every muscle felt pulled and sore. It was an unfortunately familiar sensation. She’d had a seizure. Fuck. At least she could prove her consultant wrong, right? With a quiet groan, she tried to sit up. 

“Easy, Melanie.” Someone rushed over to gently push her to lie back down again. Martin. For once, she was glad to see him. She knew him. He was safe. Martin wouldn’t hurt her. “You...You’ve been through a lot.” He tried to offer her a reassuring smile and for whatever reason, Melanie returned it. She even accepted the hand he offered her. Though, she had once been told she got...overly affection after a seizure. “Honestly, when Elias asked me to help bring you down here…” 

Her entire body tensed up at that. “Elias?” She...She had been with Elias just before the seizure happened. She was sure of it! Though, she couldn’t quite remember why. He had been talking to her; looking at her with an unbelievable intensity then...nothing. 

Martin nodded quickly. “You had a seizure in his office, Melanie. I-I thought we should call an ambulance.” He squeezed her hand. “But he insisted you’d be fine. That your seizures were a common occurance and you just needed to sleep it off.” He seemed to hesitate before moving to sit besides her. She was surprisingly thankful for his company, resting her head on his shoulder. “I’m just glad you’re okay.” 

“...I think okay might be a relative term.” Melanie snorted She didn’t voice her concerns to Martin. She didn’t mention how her seizures were anything but common and that they never happened that sporadically.  __ Something had caused her seizure and somehow, she knew Elias was behind it. He had done  _ something _ to her but she didn’t know what. She wasn’t sure she wanted to know. “But I’ll be fine. I’m tougher than I look.”

He gave her a soft smile. “I know. I-” Martin was cut off as the door to the break room slowly creaked open. 

Melanie swore her blood ran cold as Elias walked inside. He looked calm and collected with not so much as a wrinkle in his suit. “Melanie. It’s good to see you awake.” The way he said her name left the most foul of tastes in her mouth. If looks could kill, Elias would be dead a thousand times over. “We were all rather worried about you.”

She couldn’t help it. She snorted. “Somehow, I find that hard to believe.” Even with a post-seizure haze lingering in her mind, Melanie’s snark still made itself known. That was the good thing about deep-rooted anger; it never went away. It always lingered under the surface like a snake in the grass. And when it came to her boss? That snake was ready to strike at a moment’s notice. 

Elias just looked amused. “I care deeply about the health of my employees. Particularly those employed in the archives.” Not a single person in the room believed him. “Even if you and I have...had our disagreements.” That was one way to put the fact she was rather determined to be the one to end him. “Though, after this, I’m fairly certain we won’t be having any for a while.” 

No. That wasn’t possible. Had... _ Had Elias somehow caused her seizure?  _ Her eyes met his for less than a moment but the coldness in his was all the confirmation she needed. If this were a game of chess, then Elias would have just taken out her queen. He had found her biggest weakness and was ready to exploit. She glanced down. Melanie may not have been able to hurt Elias but her anger towards him continued to grow. 

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are always appreciated or hmu @ desert-lily on tumblr!


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